Browsing by Author "Russell, Steven"

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    The role of children in their HIV-positive parents’ management of antiretroviral therapy in Uganda
    (NISC Pty (Ltd), 2018) Nalugya, Ruth; Russell, Steven; Zalwango, Flavia; Seeley, Janet
    Adjustment to life on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and living with HIV as a long-term chronic condition, pose significant medical, social and economic challenges. We investigated children’s role in supporting HIV-positive parents to self-manage life on ART. Between 2010 and 2012, we conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with 38 HIV-positive parents who had been on ART for over a year. They were randomly selected from people accessing ART from three delivery sites in Wakiso district, Uganda. Data were analysed thematically. Participants reported children between the ages of 1 and 47 years providing support. Children were a source of happiness, self-worth, encouragement, and comfort. Both younger and older children supported parents’ adherence to treatment through reminding them to take the drugs and honour clinic appointments. Older children provided money to buy medication, food and shelter. Parents reported that the encouragement they received after they disclosed to their children enhanced their survival. After HIV disclosure to their children many of their fears about the future were allayed. Thinking about their children’s future brought hope. However, looking after younger children while on ART could be burdensome since some parents could not work to their full capacity due to reduced physical health. Children are an important resource in their parents’ adjustment to living with HIV while taking ART. There is a need for children to be supported by appropriate policy and other social and health development structures.
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    The transition to living with HIV as a chronic condition in rural Uganda: Working to create order and control when on antiretroviral therapy
    (Social science & medicine, 2010) Russell, Steven; Seeley, Janet
    This paper analyses the productive activities of people living with HIV following their uptake of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in rural Uganda. It presents findings from a two-phase qualitative research project carried out in 2005–2006 with a total of 70 participants in an ART delivery programme. The thematic analysis is not focused on the economic effects of ART for individuals and their households per se, but on how their work facilitated an adjustment or ‘transition’ to living with HIV as a chronic condition. The term transition refers to a person’s movement towards incorporating a long-term illness, treatment regimen and its various ramifications into his or her life. This transition is achieved by people taking action and making changes in various aspects of their lives and through reflective and spiritual endeavours. The narratives of work and related activities are interpreted to be adaptive strategies to achieve this transition: ‘quests’ to regain control, create order and to feel ‘normal’ again. The paper seeks to build understanding of the transition process to living with HIV as a chronic illness in a rural African setting. It also considers the factors enabling or hindering the transition process in a resource-limited setting, notably circumstances of poverty and vulnerability. Better understanding of this transition process, the adjustment challenges people face and the support needed, is important for the success of ART programmes, because people who adjust are more likely to sustain the management of their chronic condition.